Arnold Police Chief Bob Shockey has retired after working for the department for 34 years and leading the department since September 2001.
The City Council voted unanimously March 17 to put Shockey on paid administrative leave, a month after the council voted on Feb. 17 to direct Shockey to cease outside employment and dedicate his full attention to the Arnold Police Department, according to city documents.
Then, during a closed April 14 meeting, the council voted unanimously to approve Shockey’s retirement agreement.
“Chief Shockey dedicated nearly 34 years as a member of the Arnold Police Department and served as police chief for more than 20 years,” the city said Monday, April 18, in a written statement. “The city appreciates Chief Shockey’s service to our community and we wish him the best in his future endeavors.”
Neither city officials nor Shockey, 60, of Affton would say what his outside employment was.
However, Shockey is listed as the executive director of the Missouri Police Chiefs Association on the organization’s website, mopca.com.
Shockey and city officials also would not discuss his retirement or the decisions leading up to his separation from the department.
Arnold Police Maj. Brian Carroll has been acting as the city’s police chief since March 17, after City Council members voted unanimously in a closed meeting to name him to that job.
The council is expected to vote on whether to appoint Carroll to the chief position permanently during a meeting on Thursday, April 21. Details of that agreement were not available Monday.
City Council meetings typically are held on the first and third Thursday of every month, starting at 7 p.m. at Arnold City Hall, 2101 Jeffco Blvd.
The city’s retirement agreement with Shockey shows he will receive $212,699.96, which is one year of his current salary of $119,205, plus $50,096.96 in vacation pay and $43,398 in sick time.
However, he might receive slightly more because one pay period wasn’t completed when the deal was finalized.
Carroll’s annual salary increased from $105,000 to $115,000 when he was named acting chief, City Administrator Bryan Richison said.
Shockey started working for the Arnold Police in May 1988 after previously serving as an officer for the Rolla Police Department from May 1983 to September 1983. He also was an officer with the Manchester Police Department from September 1983 to May 1988.
While serving as Arnold Police chief, Shockey simultaneously acted as the city administrator for a short period after Matt Unrein left the job suddenly in 2012. Unrein is now the assistant city administrator and Public Works director for the city of Festus.
In 2016, the city approved a $70,000 settlement for Shockey, who had filed a lawsuit against former City Council members Doris Borgelt and Ken Moss, as well as the city, claiming they had retaliated and discriminated against him, defamed him and violated his rights after he had to deal with a harassment complaint that former Arnold Parks and Recreation Director Susie Boone filed against Moss.
Boone received a $55,000 settlement. Moss also sued and received a $60,000 settlement. The city’s insurance provider at the time covered Shockey’s $70,000 settlement, although the city had to pay a $10,000 deductible. In addition, the city paid a $5,500 deductible in the Boone settlement.
Shockey was named the Donald Red Loehr Chief of the Year by the Missouri Police Chiefs Association in 2011. Shockey has been the executive director of that association since January 2020, and he has worked for that organization in a part-time capacity, according to his Linkedin profile.